Najib Urges Muslim Moderation as Embassies Close: Southeast Asia

By Daniel Ten Kate and Berni Moestafa -
Sep 20, 2012

Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak urged Muslims to avoid violence as planned protests over
videos and cartoons offensive to Muslims prompt the U.S. to
close its embassies in Kuala Lumpur and Jakarta.

The U.S. will shut its embassy in Indonesia’s capital today
because of “potential significant demonstrations that might be
held,” according to a statement posted on its website.
Demonstrations in Kuala Lumpur prompted the U.S. to close its
embassy at noon today.

“I urge Muslims to remain peaceful and not resort to
violence as a means of showing dissatisfaction,” Najib said in
a statement late yesterday. “Now, more than ever, each of us
has a responsibility to work together for greater respect,
tolerance and understanding so we may live in harmony.”

Protests in Jakarta turned violent this week as unrest over
a film denigrating Islam spread through the Arab world and led
to an attack that killed a U.S. ambassador in Libya. Indonesia
and Malaysia must be careful to allow the public to vent its
anger while maintaining good relations with the U.S., according
to Joseph Chinyong Liow, associate dean of the S. Rajaratnam
School of International Studies in Singapore.

Both countries “see that they need to allow for a pressure
valve for these sentiments to find expression,” Liow said. “At
the end of the day, as far as strategic calculations are
concerned, both Indonesians and Malaysian governments know that
it’s not in their interest to strain their relationship with the
U.S.”

Video Blocked

Google Inc. (GOOG) blocked users in Indonesia, Malaysia and
Singapore from viewing clips of the “Innocence of Muslims” on
Youtube, its video-sharing website, Channel News Asia reported
on its website. Taj Meadows, a Google spokesman, didn’t respond
to queries about whether the videos were blocked in the
countries.

“Where we have launched YouTube locally and we are
notified that a video is illegal in that country, we will
restrict access to it after a thorough review,” he said in a
statement yesterday.

Singapore’s government cautioned that any act inciting
racial or religious violence is against the law.

“The continued circulation of this film is likely to cause
disharmony or feelings of ill-will between different groups in
Singapore,” the Ministry of Home Affairs said in a statement
yesterday. “We would like to urge members of the public to
refrain from re-posting the video or adding comments that may
further inflame the situation.”

France will close diplomatic sites in 20 Muslim countries
today on concern that a French satirical magazine’s publication
of cartoons mocking the Prophet Muhammad may provoke a violent
backlash. Embassies, consulates, cultural centers and French
schools will close today, the French foreign ministry said in an
e-mailed statement this week.

Islamic Defenders

The U.S. Consulate General in Surabaya, the American
Presence Post in Medan, the U.S. Consular Agency in Bali and the
U.S. Mission to the Association of Southeast Asian Nations will
also be closed, according to the embassy’s statement yesterday.
About 400 protesters threw rocks at police outside the U.S.
Embassy in Jakarta three days ago, injuring 11 officers as they
fought back firing tear gas.

The Islamic Defenders Front, which has led raids on
nightclubs and forced Lady Gaga to cancel a concert in June,
helped organize the protests earlier this week. A group called
the Islamic Students Organization will rally today.

“We are still waiting for information from intelligence as
to who will rally, which organization and what they normally
do,” Rikwanto, a spokesman for Jakarta’s police, said by phone.
Police expected 100 people to gather outside the embassy in
Jakarta and a further 200 in Depok, about 23 kilometers (14
miles) from the capital, he said.

‘Relatively Peaceful’

In Malaysia, diplomats warned U.S. citizens to avoid two
separate protests near the embassy, including “a large
demonstration by members of one or more political parties.” A
separate gathering will occur about 3 kilometers from the
embassy, according to a message sent to U.S. citizens.

The protests will be carried out by members of the two
biggest Muslim parties, including Najib’s United Malays National
Organization, state-run Bernama reported. While the prime
minister said the film and caricatures are “unnecessarily
inflammatory,” he touted Malaysia’s efforts to bring together
people of all faiths in a coalition of moderates.

While Indonesia has the world’s largest population of
Muslims, it maintains a secular government and recognizes other
religions. Still, Bali and Jakarta have suffered several major
terrorist attacks in the past decade, with bombings at hotels
and night clubs killing more than 220 people.

“Obviously if you have a diplomat killed you have to be
cautious,” said James Castle, a former president of the
American Chamber of Commerce in Indonesia, referring to
Ambassador Chris Stevens and three of his colleagues killed in
Libya this month.

“There have been some groups demonstrating but so far they
have been relatively peaceful,” said Castle, who has lived in
Indonesia since 1977 and survived terrorist bombings at
Jakarta’s JW Marriott hotel in 2003 and 2009. “I don’t see any
additional risk.”